1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to envelopes, and more particularly, to remailable envelopes.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Although there are several remailable or two-way envelopes which have been developed over the years, it still remains that the vast majority of companies which send out mass mailings of billing statements every month to consumer clients still use a standard window one-way mailing envelope with a separate return envelope stuffed inside. There is a definite need to come up with an acceptable two-way envelope to replace the relatively expensive and ecologically wasteful practice of using two separate envelopes.
One type of proposed remailable envelope described in the prior art includes a standard envelope which has a front and back panel, a sealable closure flap separably connected to the front panel and a sealable flap connected to the rear panel. When the supplier, i.e., gas or telephone company, sends out its monthly statement, the flap on the rear panel is folded into the envelope, and the closure flap connected to the front panel overlies the rear panel and is sealed thereto. The consumer, when returning his payment, tears off the closure flap attached to the front panel and uses the flap connected to the rear panel to overlie the front panel. The return address would be preprinted on this latter flap. The flap could be made large enough to overlie any bar code on the front panel.
Examples of such envelopes are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,558,040, Krueger, 1971; 4,308,987, Solomon, 1982; 4,565,317, Kranz, 1986; 4,595,138, Kristel, 1986; and 4,730,768, Gendron, 1988; and Canadian Patent 901,533, MacDougall, 1972.
However, such two-way envelopes having the mailing address printed on the closure flap overlying the front panel would not be acceptable by some postal authorities, including, for instance, Canada Post. According to Canada Postal Guide Part I (2.3), it is stated that the "addresses on envelopes must appear on the plain side (never on the side with the closing flap)".
It is also becoming common to find bar codes, which are readable by the post office distribution equipment, on both the front and rear panels making it impossible to use the same envelope for return mailing as proposed in the above patents, since the bar code on the rear panel would still be exposed.